Tetris: The Games People Play
Review:
Box Brown is an American cartoonist and is commonly known for his graphic novel Andre the Giant: Life and Legend and his Retrofit Comics across the web. Similar to his narration and artwork on his previous work, his full-length graphic novel Tetris: The Games People Play is impacted with the creation and history of this retro puzzle game. The story follows the creators, Alex Pajitnov and Vladimir Pokhilko of Tetris. Box Brown captivates the origins of Pajitnov’s passions with puzzle solving amongst his history of programming and his interest with numbers. Companies brought along with the story of Tetris’ creation includes Atari, Sega, and the video game monger Nintendo. Brown explores the beginning and end of a complicated story filled with controversy before Tetris sees the light of day.
First and foremost, the artwork is noticeable at first glance since the tonal color is in direct reference to how Tetris first appeared. It will be a blast of nostalgia for video game fans and Tetris fans or anyone who is familiar with retro video games. Though the artwork is simplistic and there is no more than three colors, it doesn’t impede the fluid of the story or anything in that capacity. Moreover, Brown includes various amounts of trials and tribulations that the creators faced by trying to get Tetris into the hands of video gamers. Pajitnov, surprisingly created Tetris in his spare time which seemed effortless for him to create. However, where the story truly shines is when Tetris first emerged to the public’s knowledge as well as various potential video game company publishers. Brown conveys how much of a hit the video game was which created a massive bidding war amongst the video game companies. This, obviously, didn’t go too well for anyone, especially the impatient fans who wanted to play Tetris.
The story, as captivating as it is, is filled with the history of Tetris and takes direct inspiration amongst various game consoles throughout the course of the story, but focuses primarily on the company Nintendo and Nintendo’s Game Boy handheld system. Much was at stake for the video game because of the complications of buyers and corporate greed. Many readers and fans of Tetris: The Games People Play will most likely be surprised by how much effort and dedication was put into making sure Tetris was given to the public, aside from it chain of setbacks. The story is unbelievable because how simplistic of a video game can be but can also lead to various roadblocks just to get it published. Box Brown’s Tetris: The Games People Play is intertwined with engaging storytelling and unique artwork. Although the story time jumps often, it never became too convoluted or hard to follow. The book does a great job at introducing the characters of the story, the companies involved in trying to publish Tetris and provides enough gaming background to never feel lost. This book will be both fascinating to fans of pixels, polygons, and storytellers alike.
Biography:
Box Brown is an award-winning cartoonist, comic book author, and publisher from Philadelphia. He is best known for Tetris: The Games People Play and Andre the Giant: Life and Legend. He spent 3 weeks on the New York Times Graphic Novel Best Sellers list, and has launched a comics publishing house called Retrofit Comics in 2011 which aims to publish "high quality, staple-bound comics on a regular basis." Interestingly, his early career was spent pursuing what he calls "performance art and freak show stuff." He said he would staple his body, eat light bulbs, and even smash bottles over his head. Additionally, before he wrote comics, he wrote poetry, short stories, some half-finished novels, as well as songs.
What he ultimately seeks to put forth in his graphic novels is the fact that we all have difficult lives, and yet people find ways to survive and thrive, which, he says, is heroic and triumphing over adversity. He explains that he wanted Tetris to have "the feel of a love-letter to video games." The reason that Brown used comic-style art for a book about the game of Tetris is because he said he only knows how to make comics one way, his way. He says it was challenging to take large, convoluted information and figuring out ways to discuss it in an interesting way. Balancing serious events with cartoon-like design was the thing that he says made the story interesting, but that it is important that we do not turn away from difficult truths.
Brown has certain political intentions with his writings, not excluding Tetris. He says that Tetris portrays consequences that can happen when art gets into the hands of a capitalist society. Capitalism inserts something else into the artist's life. Brown was interested in the fact that when the game Tetris was created by Pajithov who was from communist Russia, games were very much seen as a toy for boys. A big part of this book incorporates that these things and ideas are imposed upon people by capitalism.
What he ultimately seeks to put forth in his graphic novels is the fact that we all have difficult lives, and yet people find ways to survive and thrive, which, he says, is heroic and triumphing over adversity. He explains that he wanted Tetris to have "the feel of a love-letter to video games." The reason that Brown used comic-style art for a book about the game of Tetris is because he said he only knows how to make comics one way, his way. He says it was challenging to take large, convoluted information and figuring out ways to discuss it in an interesting way. Balancing serious events with cartoon-like design was the thing that he says made the story interesting, but that it is important that we do not turn away from difficult truths.
Brown has certain political intentions with his writings, not excluding Tetris. He says that Tetris portrays consequences that can happen when art gets into the hands of a capitalist society. Capitalism inserts something else into the artist's life. Brown was interested in the fact that when the game Tetris was created by Pajithov who was from communist Russia, games were very much seen as a toy for boys. A big part of this book incorporates that these things and ideas are imposed upon people by capitalism.
Instructional Activity:
Preview:
Title:
Tetris an Analysis of Themes and Characters.
Novel:
Tetris by Box Brown.
Grade/Subject:
9th-10th English Literature.
Goal
of the Lesson: To analyze the major themes and
characters motivations in the graphic novel
Tetris.
Overview:
Create your own comic: Students will create two comics in the style of Tetris using
only four colors total. In the first comic they will
depict a victory they had in gaming. In the second they will depict a time
where they lost a game. Students will create two different comic strips with a minimum of 4 panels per page and 3 pages total. Games can include board games, card games, sports,
video games, and trivia games.
California Common Core Standards:
1. RL.9–10.1 Cite strong and
thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly
as well as inferences drawn from the text.
2. RL.9–10.2 Determine a theme
or central idea of a text and analyze in detail its development over the course
of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific
details; provide an objective summary of the text.
3. RL.9–10.3 Analyze how
complex characters (e.g., those with multiple or conflicting motivations)
develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance
the plot or develop the theme.
4. RL.9–10.4 Determine the
meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative
and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word
choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and
place; how it sets a formal or informal tone). (See grade 9–10 Language
standards 4–6 for additional expectations.) CA
5. RL.9–10.5 Analyze how an
author’s choices concerning how to structure a text, order events within it
(e.g., parallel plots), and manipulate time (e.g., pacing, flashbacks) create
such effects as mystery, tension, or surprise.
Resources and Preparation:
Students will have completed reading Tetris, they will use blank comic templates given to them by us or create their own blank template. Students will be provided with different coloring pencils of which they will choose only three colors for their comics.
Instructional Plan:
[write underneath. Here provide a step-by-step explanation of how to carry out the activity. ]
Using one of the example comic templates below or creating their own comic template students will create two separate comic strips. The first comic should depict a victory they had while playing a game that they won. They can draw and use thought bubbles to express how they felt when they won, how they won, and the challenges they faced along the way. The second comic should be a depiction of a time they lost a game. They can write about the circumstances around the loss, how it made them feel, and the lesson they learned from the loss. Students can also explore other topics such as, what struggles they had playing the game, what made them chose to play the game? They will compare their experiences to characters from They will get into groups and share how heir experiences mirrored or were different from characters in the novel?knowing what they know now would they have played any differently? What was going through their mind internally? How were they behaving externally? Why was this game memorable for them? How did winning make them feel? How did losing make them feel? The panels can include pictures and thought bubbles. Tetris changed Alexey Pajitnov's life. The goal of this activity is to get students thinking about how games have shaped them and if they share any similarities and experiences to the characters in the book.Instructional Resources
Authors and Creators
This is an interview with Tetris: The Games People Play author Box Brown, where he discusses his thoughts ideas while he wrote and designed the story. It is always a good idea to hear the ideas of the novel from the creator, and to look into the vision of their Story.
On the Site of Box Brown, there are many links including a biography, his other works, and even a portfolio. Brown is a creative artist, and it would be a good idea to introduce students to his work to get a feel, before reading.
A Quick Biography of what Alexey gave to the gaming and programming world, and how he came up with the idea of Tetris, that goes slightly beyond the novel. This would work well as a summary of the novel, after completing the readings.
Computer Science and Tetris
This article shows the programming aspect of a Tetris collision, and how the game functions from a developers perspective. This could be brought into a basic computer science class, to introduce an aspect of programming, as this is considered an easy program.
This is how the game program senses a line should be cleared, or in other words, how to score points in Tetris. This could be brought into a basic computer science class, to introduce an aspect of programming, as this is considered an easy program.
The story proves that Tetris is a very simple game to program, and this link shows just how to do it, if the proper programs are available.This would capture the interest of a computer science class, as in depth tutorials are explained as to how the game runs.
Science and Tetris
This article shows that studies have proven that Teris can train your brain in a positive way, that helps reflexes, memory, and other brain functions. It gives a science heavy lesson of how Tetris helps the brain.
Moving forward, the developers of Tetris are trying to better fit the game to be a tool to train the human brain to improve natural Brain power. This article shows a Tetris game that has been in development for six years to do just that. The book has shown Tetris was an activity that helped brain activity, and this article backs that up by showing the game will now be used as a tool.
Impact of Tetris
Tetris Recently celebrated 30 years of success, which is covered in this article that would be great to go over before reading The Games People Play. This article could increase student interest before reading, which will inspire them to read more.
Some believe that Tetris is the most important game to be created, and it is based up with some strong evidence in this article. For Example, it has lasted 30 years with success, and changed the way games are made and marketed. This could be brought in to show the importance of the events of the novel, and how they changed the world.
Additional References
Example comic strip with four panel's and 2 thoughts bubbles.
Sources:
https://www.elliottbaybooks.com/event/box-brown
https://www.inverse.com/article/22061-box-brown-tetris-graphic-novel
https://www.bigplanetcomics.com/retrofit
https://www.nerdist.com/exclusive-box-brown-pieces-together-the-story-of-tetris/
Instructional Link Sources
Second example comic strip with eight panels and different shaped thought bubbles.
Third example, blank comic strip with four different shaped panels.
https://www.elliottbaybooks.com/event/box-brown
https://www.inverse.com/article/22061-box-brown-tetris-graphic-novel
https://www.bigplanetcomics.com/retrofit
https://www.nerdist.com/exclusive-box-brown-pieces-together-the-story-of-tetris/
Instructional Link Sources
"Box Brown Comics And Illustration". Box Brown Comics And Illustration, 2018, https://
www.boxbrown.com. Accessed 20 Dec 2018.
"Corporate Bios". Tetris, 2018, https://tetris.com/bios#alexey. Accessed 20 Dec 2018.
"The Obsolete Gamer Show S6E4: Box Brown (Tetris: The Games People Play)". Youtube, 2018,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSBcWQyEzYQ. Accessed 20 Dec 2018.
"Why Tetris Is The Most Important Video Game Ever Made". Shortlist, 2018, https://
www.shortlist.com/tech/gaming/tetris-most-important-video-game-ever-made/13500.
Accessed 20 Dec 2018.
Heier, Richard. "Is Tetris Good For The Brain?". Sciencedaily, 2018, https://
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090901082851.htm. Accessed 20 Dec 2018
Levy, Karyne. "The Complicated History Of 'Tetris,' Which Celebrates Its 30Th Anniversary
Today". Business Insider, 2018, https://www.businessinsider.com/tetris-history-2014-6.
Accessed 20 Dec 2018.
Stark, Chelsea. "Tetris Effect Has Been In Development For 6 Years". Polygon, 2018, https://
www.polygon.com/e3/2018/6/15/17465364/tetris-effect-preview-enhance-games-e3.
Accessed 20 Dec 2018.
Tanczos, Michael. "Retro Games: How To Make A Tetris-Like Game". Gamedev.Net, 2018,
retro-games-how-to-make-a-tetris-like-game-r2965/. Accessed 20 Dec 2018.
Williams, Michael. "Implementing Tetris: Clearing Lines". Game Development Envato Tuts+,
lines--gamedev-1197. Accessed 20 Dec 2018.
Williams, Michael. "Implementing Tetris: Collision Detection". Game Development Envato Tuts
detection--gamedev-852. Accessed 20 Dec 2018.
